Within the Oubliette
by HettyBobcat
Summary: Ed and Al Elric come across an important document in a book-filled bunker, but the location of this military assignment is transformed into a dangerous trap when Lust finds out what the boys have.
1. Chapter 1

Within the Oubliette;

Chapter 1

I wrote this story some time ago and posted it on DeviantArt so I thought I'd fix it up a little bit and post it here at I hope everyone enjoys it! There is a little bit of implied EdxWinry, but it's very subtle.

Edward Elric, Alphonse Elric, Lust, Sloth, Gluttony, Envy, Winry Rockbell, Pinako Rockbell, Roy Mustang, or Maria Ross do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owner/ owners.

Full Metal Alchemist, FMA, Hagane no Renkin Justushi, and related characters etc. are copyrighted to Hiromu Arakawa/ Square Enix, MBS, ANX, Bones, and liscensed by FUNimation Productions Ltd. (or something like that.)

Edward poured over his project. Everything was quiet in the modest room of the small  
inn except for the slight hums and grunts coming from the teenage alchemist's throat  
and the taps of metal on metal. A faint grin crept upon the lips of the boy as he  
shook his long blonde bangs from his eyes. His concentration was so complete that he  
never noticed the hulking form enter in behind him. Ed continued his work, completely  
unaware. The monster of a suit of armor stood so silently, it seemed no more than   
what it was. How it got there was almost a mystery. Perhaps it was alchemy, perhaps  
magic, or perhaps Ed was so wrapped up in his monotonous task that kept him grunting  
and tapping away, that he paid no heed to anything in his surroundings. A moment,  
two, three, a good 5 seconds of motionless observation passed before;

"What have you got there, brother?" The question was excited and child-like, seeming  
sweeter and more innocent when uttered with the young voice of the human boy's soul  
trapped within the living armor.

So surprised was Ed that he started! He hopped briefly from his chair, upper body   
landing over the pile of now rubbish, covering it with his arms.   
"Nothing! uh... fixing... fixing it!" Ed began unsure, but ended with a confidence  
that could not be undermined, unless one looked him in the face. He grinned widely,  
exposing two levels of pearly white teeth that seemed to fill his mouth too full. Al  
noticed the slight twitch of his brother's left eyebrow.

Alphonse Elric bent over with a hollow-metallic sound. He cocked his head and put a   
finger up to his "mouth." He appeared as perplexed as the helmet could allow.

"Brother, I think it's beyond repair..."

Ed blew a long sprig of hair out of his face and it went lightly back in it's  
antenna-like position, wavering above the rest of his hair. He drooped his eye lids  
and half-smiled at the almost ironic comment. He knew what he was doing.

"I think we should use alchemy to fix it." The younger brother continued innocently.

"Something like this is too delicate for Alchemy..." he started unconvincingly. His  
face brightened even as he looked away from his brother. He closed his eyes tightly  
in another huge grin, whipping his body around in his chair as he craned his neck up to  
view his kid brother. "...Which is why I have to send it to Winry!" His tone and  
attitude seemed to change instantaneously. He went from nervous and unsure to certain  
and cocky. That was Edward Elric for you. 

Al stood dumbfounded as he listened to his brother continue with the more subtle  
details as to why in the world he couldn't possibly use alchemy on such a delicate  
piece of machinery and how he knew Winry would like the practice anyway. She was such a nut over anything mechanical. Without ever ceasing his speech he pushed out from the desk, stood from his chair, and went marching to find an envelope. Al looked away from his perplexing older, but shorter, brother and pushed a finger through the pile  
of pieces.

"Strange." Al muttered silently to himself. "It looks as if brother were  
disassembling it. Maybe he thought he had to take it apart to fix it." All of the  
pieces seemed so familiar to Al, but he couldn't place what this mechanical mess could  
have been, so he couldn't even begin to try Alchemy on it. He was certain there were  
a few crucial missing pieces and he doubted that even Winry could fix it as good as  
new!

-

Winry Rockbell exited the house that she shared with her grandmother, Auntie Pinakko.   
She waited at the end of the road as she did every day at this time for the mail to  
arrive. She usually didn't get anything, but sometimes, (usually no longer than a   
month apart) she would receive a letter from Ed and Al, her childhood friends.   
Winry burst through the front door and into the den. Her eyes were glittery; she  
swooned and spun and jumped with pure bliss. She placed an ivory hand to her blushing  
cheek and furrowed her brow in adoration as she brought her right hand up before her  
to examine the package she had received. 

"Looks like cupid hit you with an arrow, child." The miniscule Auntie Pinako   
commented as she casually passed through the room, hands clasped behind her back and a long stemmed pipe tucked firmly between her teeth.

"It's galvanized!" the blonde beauty exclaimed. From behind, Pinako saw her hug  
something to her chest. The tall thin young lady turned quickly to her grandmother,  
dropping to her knees and presenting the gift for inspection. "And I've never seen a  
pink handle before!"

Pinakko adjusted her glasses and grabbed the tiny object. "Hmm." the old woman   
sniffed. "Most girls get cards, chocolates, or flowers..." Winry seemed almost hurt  
for a moment before beginning her defense. 

"No, no! Just look at it. This was custom made!" She held the tiny flat-head  
screw-driver up to her face, so close she couldn't possibly have seen it clearly. The  
metal was so very shiny and her initials were carved delicately along the shaft   
against the handle. The grip itself was a flat carnation pink and ribbed for better  
grip. The shaft was wider toward the handle and tapered down to accommodate a tiny   
flat-head tip for very delicate jobs.

"Is that all you got? A screw-driver?" The straight-forward old woman pressed,  
equally eager to hear how the two boys were doing.

Winry remembered herself once more and looked within the little box her gift had come  
in. Folded tightly at the bottom was a piece of cream colored heavy weight paper   
often used in expensive stationary. She unfolded it with a crinkling sound and walked  
to the couch to sit and read it with her guardian.

"Dear Winry," she read aloud. "Good news! You don't have to fix my automail. It  
isn't broken." There were a few scribbles right after this sentence as if the paper  
had been stabbed at and the pen scrawled around. "Hello Winry and Auntie Pinnako.   
It's me, Al. We are doing fine in a little town called Gishu. The military paid to  
put us up at an inn. We miss you both." More scribbling and a little tear in the  
paper signified another brief fight over the writing instrument. "Anyway, I was   
writing to tell you I have a little project for you. Al and I made you this  
screw-driver which will fit the parts perfectly. I wanted to write you first to make  
sure you will be able to do this. Please write to me and I will send you the package.  
You can expect to receive it within 6 days of replying to me. Be on the look out for  
it. It is very important. Sorry I can't tell you what it is or how to put it  
together. Hey, I trust you! Don't let me down!

Your friends,

Edward Elric and  
Alphonse Elric"

"A secret project? That sounds like fun. Hurry up and write them back! If you're  
quick we can have it in the mail today and begin work next week!" Pinakko said,  
rubbing her hands together greedily. Her worn skin made a rough yet pleasant sound.

"I'm not going to write them back." Winry stated.

"What?!" Auntie Pinakko's hair almost fell out of its bun, she whipped her head around  
so fast. "Certainly you're not angry with them! They haven't done anything this  
time!"

"No, it's not that."

"Then you don't think you can do the work?" The old woman grinned smugly as she  
nudged the girl in her mostly uncovered ribs.

"Oh, I'm going to do the work." Winry exclaimed, clenching her fist and staring into  
nothingness with a kind of determination and a slight grin that spoke volumes.  
"Then what..." Pinako began but was cut off when Winry stood defiantly, screw-driver  
in hand, wrench slung through a loop in her lavender cover-alls, which were unzipped  
and tied around her waist, making an interesting pair of pants.

"You heard the letter! They're in Gishu! And they're not going anywhere because they  
are expecting a return letter from me! Well, I'll give them a return letter... only  
I'll be presenting it in person. Anyway, I want to check up on Ed to make sure he  
doesn't really need any repairs..."

Pinako simply stood up, straitened her mud-colored dress and walked into the kitchen.   
"Aren't you going to say something?" Winry pressed, unsure if she liked the silent  
snicker from her grandmother.

"I don't have to. Go on and get ready. You can catch the last train of the evening  
from Risembool if you leave within the hour." The rough yet loving voice drifted from  
the other room. Winry beamed as she bounded upstairs to pack.

-

"These late nights are gonna kill us, Al." Edward dragged himself in the room,  
pushing through the door and practically collapsing to the floor in the darkness.   
"I know what you mean. I can't feel physical exhaustion, but my brain needs a rest!"   
Alphonse returned tiredly. "Why is the military making you write all of those reports  
now when they never used to?"

"Because, they don't want me to seem like I'm wasting time when we go for periods of  
of studying and searching for clues. It's a cover-up. As long as I'm sending in  
reports, they don't have to make excuses for me, I guess." Ed grumbled, grabbing a  
chair with his metal right hand and pulling it to him. He slouched in it. "Al, turn  
on a light or something, will ya?" he whined. Al lumbered to the switch near the door  
and flipped it on. Light bathed the room, and with it, the figure seated menacingly  
across from Ed, mere inches from where he sat. Both boys startled, gasping with  
surprise.

Womanly legs crossed under a black skirt. Clutching a wrench with her right hand and  
slapping it against her left making heavy patting noises she almost purred.

"So. Where's this secret mechanical project, Edward?" She smirked, and in the low  
light of the cheap room's single bulb, dark shadows case over her eyes making the  
woman look truly menacing.

Ed sat awkwardly in his wooden chair, now clutching the seat, legs drawn up, neck  
ducked down between his shoulders, eyes wide, and mouth agape. He couldn't get over  
how he had sat down so close to her and still not have even noticed she was there.  
Al had been surprised up front, but he quickly regained himself. With a smiling voice  
he trotted over to the girl. 

"Winry! When did you get here? How are you doing?!" The two exchanged a hug and  
both sets of eyes turned to Ed, who was only just now unfreezing from his defensive   
position.

-

"Here. We know it's late. You're probably tired from your trip..."

"And I know I'm certainly tired from the day!" Ed interjected.

"So we set up the bed for you to sleep in. Ed and I will sleep in here." Al continued, fluffing up Winry's pillow and turning down the blankets. Ed pulled out a spare blanket and pillow from a small closet in the room and held it under his arm. He had taken off his long red coat and removed his black and white over-shirt, leaving him in a clean black sleeveless shirt and black pants. His full metal right arm reflected the low light of the other room. Winry looked around as she crawled into the bed. 

"Where's the light switch for this room?" She asked.

"Stupid inn has two rooms and one light with the bathroom down the hall. Stupid  
military is so cheap they put us up in a place like this." Ed complained mildly.

"Don't worry about it too much. They didn't have to put us up anywhere. At least we  
have a place to sleep and we don't have to pay for it!" The suit of armor commented,  
remaining on the bright side of things.

"I guess you're right. Come on. Let's hit the sack." Ed turned and put his left  
hand on Al, turning him around and walked to the door.

"You guys!" Winry stopped them with her words. "When do I get to see the project?"

"Tomorrow." Ed said, looking over his shoulder with a smile. "Since you're here, you  
can work on it while we're gone. But you can't work on it once we get back. That  
will give you something to do all day while we hit the books."

"Good night Winry. If you need anything, let us know." Al waved and closed the door  
behind him as they left.

Winry sat up quietly for a moment before resigning herself to sleep. She slid down  
and curled up under the patch-work blanket for a restful, dream-filled sleep.

-

Edward and Alphonse sat in the dank space. The air smelled fowly of mildew and dust.  
The stagnant air of the bunker was cold and heavy. The boys could see why Roy had  
sent them on this "mission." Al sat with a pile of old water-damaged books beside him  
and a chalk transmutation circle drawn on the concrete floor between his stretched out  
legs. Edward sat on the floor across from his metal brother and leaning against a  
cart of cleaned, restored books. At all times he had one in his lap, flipping  
carefully through the pages, making sure to skim every part for something that might  
stand out and grab his attention. He found nothing so far.

"So tell me," Al began, his voice echoing through the heavy helmet, "why would someone choose to put a library below ground? It seems... counter-productive to me."  
Edward glanced up, ceasing his page-turning for a moment. As he began to talk, his  
eyes fell back to his previous task.

"This wasn't the library." He waited for a response, though, he didn't really expect  
one. He blew a sigh before flipping the book closed on his gloved mechanical thumb to   
keep his place. He stretched his human arm comfortably, resting it over his raised  
knee. He reclined and stared lazily at Al. "There used to be a library here. Well,   
not here;" he illustrated by pointing to the ground before them, " the library was  
above this, in that empty lot. This was originally a storm shelter or a bomb shelter  
or something. The guy who took care of the library was a little fanatical about   
books."

"It seems they all are." Al pointed out, extending a finger vaguely upward, as he  
remembered other librarians and book-worms he's run into.

"Yeah." Ed chuckled. "Anyway, he got wind of a controversy that he feared would turn  
into a war. In a panic, he rushed as many books as he could into this cellar for safe  
keeping. If nothing else, he wanted the books to be saved. Of course, he couldn't  
fit them all down here." He looked around at his surroundings, noticing the shelves  
and stacks of books crammed into such an impossibly small area. He almost laughed at   
his statement, realizing how much work lay ahead of him as it was. 

Al sat strait-backed, waiting to hear the conclusion to the story.

"Well, the trouble never started a war, but it did start some rioting. It turns out  
it was the people of this town who, in a panic, planned to march out of the city to  
confront their 'enemies.' During the march many people, some blinded by anger or  
fear, others drunken, many both, vandalized buildings on their way. The library was   
one of the few completely destroyed. The librarian burned up inside with his books.   
He was still in the process of moving them out." At the end of his story, Ed flicked  
his metal wrist, opening his book back to his saved place.

"That was a very tragic story. Did the rioters accomplish anything? Did the people  
they were out to stop have even worse intentions?" Al asked, still intrigued and now  
completely forgetting about his pile of work behind him.

"That's the funny part. From what I understand, it seems like the uproar was over  
some tax the governor had implemented. It was a high tax, but not completely unfair,  
it seems. I think the end benefit was going to be for restoration of old buildings in  
the town. The library may have been one of them." He chuckled almost humorlessly.   
"Now _that's_ ironic. In the end, the tax was withdrawn. As you can see, the  
restoration never took place. That's why the library was never saved nor rebuilt and  
why the only inns in this town are cheaply maintained, yet over-priced." He huffed  
another humorless sound.

"So over time, no one knew that many of the books had been saved down here."

"If you can call it 'saved.' There was so much damage from leaks, humidity, and  
insects, even our alchemy can't restore them completely." Ed ran a gloved hand  
through his bangs. Both boys were mentally exhausted. "You're lucky, at least. You  
can't smell this rank air!" Ed frowned at Al, who just cocked his head and seemed to  
exude an aura that told his brother he was grinning warmly within.

Al placed another moldy tome from his pile on the transmutation circle. He clapped  
his hands together once and held them stiffly above the book as if he were warming his  
hands over a fire. A blue light shown as the water was drawn from the pages and the  
materials of the book were restored to an 'as good as it can get' state. The water  
from the pages was transported to a glass jar at the edge of the circle. He had a  
few other similar jars, filled with water and with lids screwed on tight. The now  
dried and cleaned book remained. Al picked it up carefully and handed it to Edward,  
who tossed it carelessly into his pile of cleaned books he had yet to read or   
reorganize.

"Will these books be taken to Central when we're done?" Al asked, keeping his sanity  
during his monotonous task by keeping silences to a minimum.

"First we need to look through them all. The important ones will go to Central. The  
others will be divvied out to other libraries in the area."

"But we get first dibs. I mean, that's why Lieutenant Colonel Mustang chose us for  
the job, right?"

Edward just sniffed a response, though not much of one. "Can we just get back to work. All this talking is making this take longer."

The armor paused a moment in silence. He looked his older brother over once,  
observing him reading each book for some clue into restoring their bodies to normal  
again. Ed's life was devoted to that single cause. He had time for nothing else.   
Alphonse resumed his dreary task; place damaged book in the circle, perform alchemy to  
clean and restore the book, hand book to Ed, get a new water jar.

-

Winry woke up late in the morning. The sun was getting high in the sky and the warmth  
had already spread over her legs. She stretched and sat up with a stifled yawn. The  
brightness of the room startled her into full wakefulness.

"Oh my gosh! What time is it?" She jumped from the bed and pressed herself against  
the window. She noted the sun and panicked for a moment before realizing where she   
was.

She pulled on her mechanic's suit, ready to start work on the project. She went into  
the entry room (something of a den) and looked around for signs of this mystery   
mechanical job. She spied a reed basket on the little desk, the only surface in the  
room, and walked over to it. On the outside a note was pinned.

"Breakfast. You'll find the pieces to the machine in a box at the bottom of the   
basket. Have fun."

The young lady rubbed her chin and almost laughed at what a short and vague message  
they had left her. She pulled out a bundle wrapped in a red and white checkered  
napkin. The contents were a piece of bread, an apple, and a wedge of cheese. Beside  
the basket was a kettle of cold water. The whole thing looked a bit unappetizing, but  
she wasn't normally one to look a gift-horse in the mouth. She systematically bit off  
a chunk of apple, a chunk of bread, and a chunk of cheese, combining them in her  
mouth. Crumbs fell to the table and she brushed them away just as soon as they fell.   
She tinkered with the little unimpressive box before opening it. A wave of  
disappointment hit her but passed quickly. She had expected a big project. She  
expected something to keep her busy for a few days. This tiny thing, though, should  
only occupy her time until Ed and Al were to return. Certainly this wouldn't take any  
longer than that! She was a professional after all!

She lifted the lid and turned the box upside down, scattering the pieces all over the table.  
"This shouldn't be too hard." She started to say until, after examining everything briefly, she concluded that there were some vital pieces missing. "I guess I'll build until I can go no further, then I'll determine what I need and ... make them, I guess..." She told herself with almost no uncertainty to her voice. She pulled the little screw-driver from her pocket and proceeded to fit things together in the most logical way.

"No wonder Ed needed me to do this. If he doesn't even know what he's making and he's   
missing pieces, this would be an impossible task for anyone but myself." She bragged  
to herself.

She tinkered the hours away without even realizing it. Her mostly uneaten breakfast  
sat drying on the edge of the table, pushed right against the basket which was on the  
verge of falling. She paid either of them no mind as she spread out and worked. She  
was surprised at how little she had accomplished before she was pulled from her  
concentration by the opening of the door. Ed dragged himself into the room followed  
by his brother. Both boys smelled terrible. She remembered Ed saying that she was  
only to work on the project when they were gone, but she tried to continue as long as  
she could before he stopped her. 

"Winry, let's go downstairs and get you some dinner." Al said, his mood brightening  
from seeing his childhood friend.

"Well, I'm not really..." she began.

"Yeah, the two of you go and get a table. I'm going to take a bath and I'll be right  
down. Save some food for me!" Edward passed through the room with a towel and a  
fresh pair of black pants. Without waiting to hear Winry's protest, he walked out of  
the room's door and down the hall to the bathroom.

The mechanic sighed, saddened by the abandonment of her work, but knew it would be  
good to catch up with the boys for a while before they all went to sleep. 

-

Winry and Al sat at a small table set for three. They laughed and joked and   
reminisced as they always did when they were together. Winry sipped occasionally from  
her glass of water. Al had one too, but his stayed noticeably full the entire time.

"Thanks for waiting you guys." Ed pulled out a chair and joined the two. He noticed  
his glass of water in front of him and took a few long gulps.

"We went ahead and ordered for you. We got a big plate of spaghetti and a basket of  
garlic bread that we can share. I hope you don't mind." The girl smiled widely as  
she brushed some of her hair back behind her shoulders. "So, can you tell me anything  
about this assignment you two are on?" She clasped her fingers, creating a surface on   
which to rest her chin, both elbows firmly on the table.

"Actually we can't..." Ed began until Al cut him off.

"I'm sure we can tell you about it. I mean, it's not like we're doing dangerous things and we wouldn't have to worry about anything being taken or destroyed because it's you!" To  
Alphonse, his logic was infallible, but Ed had his doubts.

"We probably shouldn't because someone might over hear us." The pint-sized alchemist   
pointed out, leaning forward on the table and lowering his voice. He was looking  
directly into his younger brother's eyes before he caught a glimpse of Winry in his  
peripheral vision. He turned his head to the left, keeping the rest of his body still  
and looked the young lady directly in the eyes. 'She's good at that.' Ed thought to  
himself. She almost had tears welled up in her eyes. Her hands were planted firmly  
in her lap and her bottom lip protruded in a pout so irresistible that the boy just  
couldn't stand it. 

"Okay. We're restoring old books that had been saved from a fire a few years ago.   
It's no big deal." He dismissed, collapsing his cheek onto his fist in a defeated  
posture.

"We have free run of the area, allowing us to study and search for clues as we work."   
Al added. "Many of the books are alchemy books and many others are history documents which could lead us to some answers. When we're done, we will turn the books over to the military and they will divvy them out to the surrounding libraries, but we get to keep what we want!"

Winry rocked back in her seat, eyes widened slightly. Her mouth was slightly agape in  
a small 'oh' form. Suddenly Edward and Alphonse felt hot under the collar and wondered  
if they should have said anything at all. She closed her lips and allowed a smile.   
Neither brother could tell if it was genuine or forced.

"Well that sounds just fine! I'm glad you've been given this golden opportunity!" the  
blue eyed woman beamed. The boys were struck dumbfounded, unsure of how to respond. On the other side of the eatery an empty booth near a wide, dark window was the only witness to the sound of a stomach growling; the incessant, spiraling sound of a pallet never satisfied. A pale woman with long black hair and a long black dress pressed her long black gloves to the window. She ran her finger tips over the spot where she saw  
the Elric brothers. She half-smiled as she watched a young woman in a long apron set a plate of food before the trio at that table. A warm smile covered the lady's face  
as she bowed slightly and walked to the door. Behind her she could hear the slurping   
sounds of her fat, lumbering companion as he consumed a woman who looked just like  
the waitress. The server walked through the door, slowly transforming from a young,  
brown-haired woman in a pink dress and apron into a lanky young boy with fair skin,  
black clothes, and dread-locked hair.

"Lust! I'm still hungry." The fat man with beady white eyes whispered as he sucked  
the iron-tasting blood from his plump, pink fingers. His hands were glossy with  
saliva. He opened his mouth to speak once more, revealing a red tattoo of a serpent  
devouring its own tail on his wide, dull-magenta tongue.

"You're always 'still hungry." the tall woman replied, cutting him off in her low,  
sultry voice. Her thin dark lips glistened even in the absence of light out there in   
the alley in the middle of the night.

"We've found the book." Envy smirked, understanding the weight his statement held.   
He stood with his head cocked to the side, hand on hip and right leg crossed  
comfortably in front of his left. He appeared confident as he chuckled in his throat.   
Lust smiled her dark, exotic smile. Without another word, all three backed away into  
the shadows, leaving to begin their plan.

-

The next two days carried on exactly the same way. The Elric brothers cleaned and  
sorted through books, typed up a short report on their day's progress, Winry continued  
to be fully absorbed in her little task through out the day, and in the evening all  
three ate dinner together and went to sleep.

The third day was shaping up to go much the same way. The boys were out the door  
before the sun had fully detached itself from the darkened horizon. Once at the  
deceptively small entrance, Maria Ross was there to greet them (She always seemed to  
play nanny to the boys for some reason.) She saluted in her normal fashion and bade  
them good morning. Edward dismissed her, as her shift standing post had ended the  
moment they arrived. Completely alone save for one another, they opened the heavy  
metal door and descended the steep, long stair way into the dark chamber, heavy with   
its moldy, rancid air.

Ed held his breath when he first walked in as he always did. It was a fruitless  
endeavor and he knew it, because he had to breathe sometime, and when he did, he  
brought in a sickeningly large gulp of stagnant air, causing him to gag and cough a  
little before adjusting himself to it. 

-

Winry awoke a few hours after the alchemists had gone. She got up, took a bath, and   
resumed her little job. She sat with her ankles crossed beneath her. She chewed on an apple that was left as part of her breakfast. She rested her cheek heavily on her hand. Her brilliant blue eyes drooped as she tapped the little machine with the metal end of her tiny screw-driver. A little bit of time spent thinking proved beneficial. Her eyes  
widened with a clear understanding. She put the apple core in the picnic basket and  
set the whole thing on the floor beside her. She picked up the tiny mechanical  
master-piece and turned it over in her hands.

"I'm missing the key." She stated plainly to herself. The answer had been so  
painfully obvious, she was shocked it hadn't occurred to her sooner.

"I'm going to go ask the boys if they know where it is. I'd hate to spend the time  
making a new one if they have the old one stashed away." She pushed her work to the  
middle of the table and got up to leave.

-  
(end of chapter 1. Please view chapter 2. :D )


	2. Chapter 2

Within the Oubliette;

Chapter 2

Edward Elric, Alphonse Elric, Lust, Sloth, Gluttony, Envy, Winry Rockbell, Pinako Rockbell, Roy Mustang, or Maria Ross do not belong to me. They belong to their respective owner/ owners.

Full Metal Alchemist, FMA, Hagane no Renkin Justushi, and related characters etc. are copyrighted to Hiromu Arakawa/ Square Enix, MBS, ANX, Bones, and liscensed by FUNimation Productions Ltd. (or something like that.)

"That's almost the last of it." Ed smiled, flashing his pearly teeth the way he always  
did. Alphonse nodded, glad to have this over with. Both boys knew there was still  
more sorting to do, but every book was cleaned, and much of the sorting had been going  
on parallel to the restoration procedure. 

The two had found some important alchemical documents. Most of the books were simply pieces of literature and nothing more. Those would most likely be distributed away, as they would prove little to no use to the military. Both brothers began putting the   
books neatly into crates in order based on subject.

The hulking suit of metal bent over, joints clacking and echoing dully in the solid  
cement room under ground. He picked up a tattered old book that looked more like a  
cash ledger in binding than a piece of reading material. A loose piece of paper fell  
out and when the younger brother picked it up he examined it for a moment.

"Brother, what do you think this is?" He handed the list over to the blonde boy. He  
examined it boredly for a moment. As his lazy eyes drifted left to right and up to  
down, his expression grew a little more serious. Curious, he took the book Al was  
holding, knowing that the page had fallen from there.

"Brother?" The metal man questioned, pressing his sibling gently to answer.

"It's a list..." He flipped to the front of the book, using his metal index finger on  
his right hand to keep the place where the page had fallen from. The book was very  
thin and there was not writing on every page. "... it appears to be a list of..." He  
looked into Alphonse's red, glowing eyes, "... alchemists."

"What is so surprising about that?" His hollow voice resounded from within the metal  
shell. He leaned into Edward's shoulder, hoping to glimpse at the contents of the  
thin, brown leather book.

"They were other alchemists who researched human transmutation, the philosopher's  
stone, and alternate means of creating it." A surprised feeling of disbelief crowded both  
teenagers. What could it mean to them? What could it mean for them?

"What all does it say?" Al pressed in a hushed voice.

"It has each person's name, a brief description of their alchemical areas of specialty, and where their research has been documented and stored!" A silence passed once more "We can use this to our advantage." Edward looked up, golden eyes wide and sparkling.

"But don't we have to turn it into Central?"

"They don't know we have it." Ed smirked. 

The book was set to the side as they finished packing up the materials to be moved out   
the next day. After the Full Metal Alchemist typed up his report for the day, the  
military would be notified and a crew would gather up the crates and take them away.  
Book in hand, the red and black clad dog of the military, along with his faithful   
little brother ascended the stairs. The Ed placed his metal hand on the heavy, rusty  
door, preparing to push it open. He paused, leaning his ear close to the portal.

"What is it?"

"Shh." Ed placed a gloved finger to his lips, entreating the younger Elric to be  
quiet. "Quick," he raspily whispered, "drop the book down into your body! I hear  
foot steps."

Al looked around frantically for a moment before lifting his head, dropping the book  
within the empty cavity as if he were gobbling the thing up. 

"Okay. Don't act suspicious." Edward plastered a smile on his face and started to  
open the door again. He pushed a second time to no avail. His false smile was  
quickly wiped away. His eye brows furrowed with a mixture of emotions, from  
confusion, to frustration, to determination.

"What's...?" Al began to ask from behind, cowering slightly on the stairs. The lights  
had been turned off and there was nothing but murky blackness below him. Edward's  
face was slightly illuminated by a space in the door frame, where a brilliant full moon   
shown down from above. Edward only had the soft red glow from his artificial eyes  
lining his face and keeping him from being swallowed completely by the dark.

"Somebody's barred the door. I can get us out. Hang on." He began. He turned once  
more with determination. He drew his arms back, ready to clasp them together in a  
brilliant show of science.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." A throaty, feminine voice floated from without.   
Edward stopped abruptly, not wanting to chance something.

"Do what?" He pressed, agitation in his voice. He recognized the sound. 

"Touch that door again." She mocked.

Edward scoffed and began again.

"I have a high-powered generator out here with both negative and positive cables  
attached to this metal door. A human hand touching it would be bad enough, but with  
as much metal as you have in your body, I doubt you could possibly survive. Further   
more, if your metallic sibling were to be standing... say, on the metal stairs, then I  
wouldn't doubt if that blood seal of his might just burn right off."

The threat was a heavy one. Edward huffed, teeth gritted in suppressed rage. He   
dropped his hands to his sides in clenched fists. 

"So that's your game... well, what is it that you want from us? That is, now that you  
have us in your little cage?"

The woman on the other side of the door stood with three other companions. Gluttony's  
stomach whined and his stood sad-faced sucking on his finger, drool hanging from the  
corner of his mouth. Envy stood confidently on the left side of the tall, dark  
woman. He brushed a hand through his long, tendriled hair, glad to be occupying his  
"cute-self" again. Directly behind Lust a quiet woman in a black dress stood smiling  
modestly behind them all. A large, heavy metal grate leaned against the earthen mound  
which covered the dome-ceiling underground room. Lust leaned back, turning her  
attention to Sloth. She held a gloved, sharp-fingered hand up to her mouth and  
whispered. 

"If they try to blow a hole out else-where, we cover it with the grate and electrify  
it. Then you know what to do."

"I'm waiting for an answer!" Edward screamed, jerking his head, causing his braided  
hair to fall from his shoulder to hang straight down his back. 

"I want the book," came the simple reply.

"What book? There are hundreds down here! Take your pick!" the defiant youth  
protested.

"I want the list. I want the book of names. You've been down there long enough. You  
know what I mean." The diabolical sin smiled her thin-lipped smile to an un-seeing   
audience.

Edward stumbled backward, almost falling into Al. The young boy placed his large  
hands over his brother's shoulders and squeezed slightly.

"They don't mean..."

"Yes Al. I'm afraid they do."

"What are we going to do?" 

"Go to the middle of the room. I want you to hoist me up. I'm going to break through  
this egg shell!" Ed whispered with conviction. 

"Okay. You'll get your book. Let me get it out of the crate. It's been packed  
away." Ed lied to buy time for his brother and himself.

Al trotted heavily to the middle of the room. Edward followed.

"Al, hand me that crowbar. We need to open this crate." Edward spoke loudly, hoping  
to make the woman outside believe his story.

Confused, the armor looked around for the tool.

"Don't really hand me the crowbar. Give me a lift!" Ed whispered frantically. Metal  
and leather hands hoisted the petite man up, standing him firmly on his shoulders.   
"I can just reach it..." Ed said, placing his finger tips on the ceiling. He clapped  
his hands and touched the mildewy cement, forming an opening and creating a short  
hanging stone ladder. Edward scrambled up the exit only to be stopped as a metal  
fence was dropped over his head. It almost hit him and he let go of the ladder,  
dropping out of instinct. He almost fell, but his red coat caught on the rough  
natural materials in the hole.

"I knew you would do that." Lust smirked down at him from below. Sloth walked slowly to the opening, standing on the grate and leaning over. Eyes closed respectfully, she extended her arms, limbs becoming as water. The cold liquid rushed through the new  
entrance, past the grid of metal rebarb. The force hit Ed, drenching him and dropping  
him 6 feet to Al's waiting arms. 

"I've got you, brother!" The catch had not been a soft one and Ed coughed and  
cringed, trying to catch his breath in his empty lungs.

A shoveling sound over head and to their right could be heard muffled. Ed and Al  
huddled together, out of the direct path of the water. A pipe was shoved through and  
shortly, the water ceased. The water began again, slowly at first, and then a harsh  
rush through the newly placed pipe.

"Oh, I'm electrifying this grate too. Soon the water level will rise and if you don't  
drown, you'll float helplessly into the electric fence. I'd say you have less than an  
hour to turn the book over to us." 

The sounds of the turbulent water were too loud for either one to hear whether the  
group had left or not. The continuing flow of water led them to believe they were all  
still out there.

"Brother! What will we do?" Al shouted above the torrent.  
Ed sputtered and spat, struggling to keep his head above water with the weight of his  
arm and leg. "We're too low to make drainage holes at the base. The water wouldn't  
run out."

"And we can't make holes in the top because those bad guys would see them and pour  
water down those too!" Al panicked. 

The water level kept rising and soon it had Full Metal standing on his toes to keep  
breathing.

"I always knew being short was going to get me killed!" He complained sarcastically.  
The water level had risen well above Edwards head and Al had to hold him up. This  
wouldn't last very long, he knew. The empty armor had filled with water, leaving him  
anchored to the floor and much too heavy to move. Plus the swirling, foaming waters  
kept sweeping his legs out from under him. It was much too difficult to maintain his  
own footing and to keep Ed above water.

"Brother, I know you wont like this, but I think you are going to have to take off  
your arm and leg. They are just too heavy for you!"

"What? That will leave me helpless! It will make it harder to perform alchemy! I won't do it. Not now. I have to be able to transmute. Don't worry, Al! I'll think of something. I'll think of something to do. I'll save you from this!"

"Just take your arm and leg off! Brother! For me!" Alphonse cried. The water was  
rising and Ed was having to lunge upward to get his breath. Al could see there was no   
changing the stubborn state alchemist's mind. Even if there was something he could do,  
Al could see that Ed was too panicked to think clearly enough to come up with an idea,  
let alone pull it off.

"Brother! Forgive me!" the soul ensconced within the metal shell cried out  
desperately as he grabbed his human sibling. Ed's eyes went wide with surprise,  
pupils receding and becoming dull with fear. Both boys screamed with agony, one  
physical, one emotional, as the battle-ready 14 year old wrapped his right arm around  
Ed's fleshy torso and gripped the automail with his left, yanking it hard, severing it  
from Ed's body. Al threw the piece of rubbish to the side and dunking his brother  
under water for a moment, he pulled the metal leg from the socket. Edward screamed  
again, crying! He almost swallowed a mouth-full of water, but luckily had the  
presence of mind not to inhale. He hadn't the time to prepare himself for that kind  
of pain, so he hadn't the time to harden his heart against it. Al cried too. He  
cried for causing his brother such pain. He cried for taking the initiative against  
his older brother. He cried about the situation that he had been put in which made  
such a sacrifice necessary. Ed almost passed out, but Al shook him into wakefulness.

"Brother! You have to stay awake!" Ed's head lolled a little and Al left him to bob  
there for a moment. He ducked down, ripping the lid from a crate violently. The  
buoyant wood floated to the surface immediately. Al placed his brother on the   
make-shift raft. Ed sputtered and coughed, laying flat on his stomach and holding on  
as best as he could with one arm.

As water moved higher up on Al's iron body, Ed was able to smile for a moment.

"Thanks."

Al nodded in response. He was afraid now. More afraid for himself then he had been  
before. Now that the immediate danger was pushed aside for his brother at the time  
being, he was able to worry about himself. He knew if the water dissolved the blood  
seal his soul would have no tie to this world and he would be taken back to that  
black, screaming gate. He shuddered a little, trying to remain calm.  
The flow of water stopped a short distance from the ceiling.

"Are you ready to give us the book?" Lust's evil voice floated eerily into the black,  
water-filled oubliette. "If you say no, we'll just leave you in there. I'm sure  
Lieutenant Colonel Mustang will find you in the morning, after you've drowned to   
death." Her seductive voice turned harsh and bitter. "And remember! You can't get   
out! Both exits are electrified!" She taunted with anger, having not heard a  
response.

"Brother! Ed! Let's just hand over the book!" Al tried to say, but he was completely  
submerged and Al could not hear him at all.

"Both exits are electrified?" Ed muttered under his breath as he floated on the crate  
top. He thought about the door. With his one arm, he paddled silently to the door at   
the top of the stairs. "If both doors are electrified, then we would be toast by now  
since this door is completely under water!" he whispered to himself. He started to  
clap his hands together until he realized he was without. He pushed off from the wall  
and skimmed across the water to where Al was.

"Al! Al! Can you hear me? You've got to get to the door!" He whispered harshly.   
Ed swished his arm frantically in the water trying to get Al's attention but he was  
too far above him. With all of the resolve he could muster, he gritted his teeth with  
determination, gulped in a chest-full of the rank, old air, and rolled off of the  
floating, wooden platform. He didn't have much control in the water. He only had two   
limbs and he floated miraculously well. But right now he didn't need to float. He  
needed to sink. He broke the water's surface again and exhaled, dropping slowly in  
the water. He patted Al's heavy metal chest. His dark eyes lit slowly as he raised  
his head. In the all encompassing blackness of the dirty, thick water, Al's red eyes   
shown slightly over his brother's face. Franticly, Ed motioned Al toward the door.   
Heavy and weighted with water, the behemoth clutched his brother protectively to his  
body and walked with painful slowness to the stairs. He couldn't ask his brother what  
they were going to do. He just had to trust him. 

Ed's lungs felt like they would collapse in on themselves but he focused on moving  
forward, and didn't let a little thing like oxygen deprivation obscure his goal. Atop  
the stairs Ed motioned to the door, then clenched a fist and motioned again. 

Confused, but trusting, Al swung a lumbering fist to the metal door. He was not   
electrocuted and suddenly it made sense. His motions were too slow to knock down the  
door, and he was afraid the sins would hear him any way. He scratched a transmutation   
circle into the door with his spiked elbows and placed his hands on the door. A flash  
of blue and white light erupted on the other side of the door and soon a flood of  
water drained onto the ground. Ed and Al fell out. Ed coughed and gasped, choking  
for air. In the end, the frigid water and the pain and the long time with out fresh  
air took its toll and he passed out. Al's blood seal had faded a great deal. He was  
struggling to keep his hold on this body, but the final wave of water when they  
tumbled through the door had done much damage. He fell limp beside his brother. He   
used every bit of his will to keep himself tethered to this world. Water flowed from  
within him and the book floated out along with it all.

Rageful, Lust looked to the happenings at the bottom of the mound. They had only one   
generator, and could only electrify one door at a time. At any rate, if they had  
allowed the electricity to touch the water, Sloth would have been electrocuted too,  
and that would have put a damper on their plans completely.

With a leap to rival any wild cat, she landed before the boys. Her eyes flashed with  
anger, ready to kill them before she noticed the book laying at her feet. She picked  
it up, pages dripping wet. She huffed a chuckle of disbelief, then another and another  
until she was laughing, head thrown back and mouth agape. Envy moved beside her,  
taking the book from her hands. He wore a wide grin on his face. 

"I can't believe it's ours! That was so easy!" he chuckled. He flipped through the  
pages to the front. His expression passed from extreme joy, to moderate amusement, to  
quiet disbelief and into the realm of horrific confusion. He stood there looking at  
the pages with his mouth hanging open. Lust grinned at him.

"What's the matter?" she cooed sarcastically. She pulled the book from his lanky finger  
and opened it herself. Her cool grin snapped quickly to utter shock, eyes wide,  
unsure what to do. The other two moved in to take a peak. Gluttony turned his eyes  
down and started to walk away, still sucking on his finger. Sloth turned her eyes  
down too, but looked no more upset or shocked than her expression showed when first  
she showed up that night.

Lust clenched her teeth. This was hardest on her as she gripped the book with the  
drenched pages. All of the ink was smeared and mostly gone. The list had been  
completely destroyed. Her bottom lip trembled as she continued to stare in disbelief.  
Envy placed a hand on her shoulder before turning to leave. She threw an icy,  
hateful glare toward the Elric's before leaving, knowing that it was completely her  
own fault that she had lost the book. 

"I hope they die out here tonight." She muttered, knowing that wasn't so. She needed   
them. Out of every alchemist currently practicing, they were the closest to her goal.

-

A few hours passed and Winry finally found her way to the under ground library that  
the boys had told her about.

"I hope I didn't miss them. It is awfully late." She rounded the last bend before  
coming to a mostly empty lot with a mound covering the storm-shelter-like building,  
housing the saved tomes of the destroyed library. The full moon's light was bright,  
but still obscuring enough to make her stop and blink a few times when she saw the  
darkened forms lying on the ground. She started to walk closer, but as realization   
began slowly sinking in her tread became a jog before turning into a full sprint.

"Ed! Al! Wake up!" She screamed frantically, trying to rouse the boys. She noticed  
they were drenched and had to bite back a lump in her throat when she saw the broken  
wires hanging from Ed's empty sockets. "What happened to you?" she whispered  
shakily. 

"Winry." Came the weak and quiet voice of Alphonse Elric. He sounded so distant,  
like he was a tiny version of himself in the back of his armor. "Winry. Make sure  
Brother is alright." 

"Al, what happened here?" She asked, placing a trembling hand on her friend's cold  
surface. Al could not feel her. He couldn't feel her shaking. He couldn't feel her  
warmth. He never could. But he used to be able to at least tell that he was being  
touched. But right now, he could hardly even hear her. His soul felt like he was  
caught in a tornado height in the air, flying like a kite from a lather strap attached  
to reality. It was all blackness around him except for a little bit of light a long  
way down. That little bit of light housed Winry's face and he clung to that image as  
hard as he could.

"I don't know how long I can hang on to my body. Make sure brother is okay."  
Winry turned reluctantly from him and grabbed Ed by the shoulders. She shook him  
hard, much harder than she should have, but in doing so she could see water coming  
from his nose. She brought both hands to her mouth, gasping. She tilted his head  
back and began pumping below his ribs with her hands. Before she was able to   
administer breathing for him, he spit dirty water from his mouth. She pushed him over  
on his side while he coughed and gasped for air. His skin was freezing, which was  
probably a good thing. Since he was so cold, his body needed less oxygen, so he was  
able to survive longer without any.

"Brother..." Al managed quietly and comfortingly.

Shaking his head he managed to sit up with Winry's help. He glimpsed at the   
stationary suit.

"Al? Al? Al?! what's wrong? Why aren't you moving??" Ed panicked.

"My seal is weak..." he wheezed. He struggled harder from within. He pulled himself  
back. He still had a tie to this world. He was still here. His seal was not gone  
and he needed no transmutation to bring him back. He pulled with all of his might.  
Edward used his left hand and threw Al's head from his body. The seal was indeed  
weak. It was still complete, but it was faded horribly. The alchemist pivoted his  
head franticly. With no other option he took his left index finger into his mouth,  
tearing flesh from the tip. Blood gathered there and then began to form full beads of  
crimson that dotted together and ran slowly, thickly down his hand. He placed the tip  
of his torn digit to the circle, tracing it with care and precision, squinting at the  
stinging sensation of contact on his now raw flesh. Winry had stumbled back, amazed  
by what she was seeing. Certainly there never was a bond as strong as was shared  
between these two.

Al could feel the tempest die down a little. He still had to pull himself in, but  
with a firmer hold, he found it much easier. He pulled and struggled until that light  
to the outside world filled his sight. When done, Ed sat back, grabbing Al's head and  
holding it in his lap. The decapitated body twitched slightly before pushing its  
hands underneath it and pushing up. Sitting cross-legged on the muddy ground, he  
reached slowly for his head. Ed leaned forward and stopped him, placing it back on  
his body like a crown.

"That was exciting, huh!" Ed smiled weakly. Al nodded, smiling within also. They   
couldn't help it. They fell into each other, embracing each other, knowing that their  
lives were very dangerous and if they didn't have anything else, they still had each  
other. They knew they had to cherish that. The two remembered themselves and turned  
to Winry, who had come and essentially saved them.

"How did you know to look for us?" Ed smiled. Winry was dumb-struck for a moment,  
trying to remember why she had come out here in the first place. Remembrance lit her  
face and she stood up.

"Oh yeah! I wanted to know if you had any of the missing pieces. I'm all done except  
for those." Winry stated. Ed chuckled low in his throat. Al did not understand what   
could be amusing about that, unless, of course, it was the unlikliness of it all.  
Suddenly, Al remembered something too and began feeling around in the muck.

"What are you doing?" Ed asked, still sitting, and still missing two limbs.

"The book! Those people took it from me while we were laying there and then they  
dropped it again. I guess it wasn't what they thought it was!" Al said.

"What people? Who did this to you?" The blonde young lady stood, towering over the  
crippled boy. The powerful alchemist seemed much less ominous, much less intimidating like this. It almost made her want to cry.

"Don't worry about it." Ed looked into the opening of the dark hole at the level of  
water just below the entrance and lamenting his lost appendages. "They aren't people  
you can catch. They have to be destroyed ... and we don't have the power to do that  
yet." Ed sneered, droplets of water ran down his back, playing Plinko with the tiny  
blonde hairs on his skin.

"I found it!" Al exclaimed, sounding like a cheerful child again. He brushed the   
sloppy mud from the cover, shaking it a little, letting it drip for a moment before  
opening it. "oh." he said, sounding down and disheartened again.

"What is it?" Al handed the little book over to his brother, who was laying on his  
side now, supporting his upper body a little bit with his good arm. He flipped  
carefully through the soaked pages, trying not to rip them.

"Can we use alchemy to fix it?" The big child asked innocently.

"Most of the ink was washed completely away. It wouldn't work. It's not even still  
on the pages." Edward slapped the book away from himself with a grunt. "All of that   
trouble for nothing."

"Well, at least they didn't get it. That's the important thing." the younger Elric  
comforted. 

"I guess you're right." Ed scowled lazily off into the night as he conceded his  
brother's point. He glanced again at the dark water. "I won't be able to get my arm  
and leg tonight. We'll have to wait until we can get the military to drain the whole  
place."

"All that work for nothing." It was now Al's turn to complain.

"Yeah. That was a lot of long days and nights sitting down there in the cold. Now  
all of the books have been destroyed." As if to accentuate his point, a tattered  
piece of paper floated into and out of the light near the door. "Al, you're gonna  
have to type up my report tonight." He said flatly.

"You still want to type up a report even after all you've been through tonight?"   
Winry was shocked. It just seemed kind of... uncharacteristic.

"This wasn't a military job," Ed began as Al picked him up to start the walk back to  
the hotel, "it was an excuse."

"What?" She was surprised. She didn't understand.

"There was no military interest here." Al continued for his brother. "Mustang gave  
us this job so we could look through all of these alchemy books. He was giving us   
exclusive rights to clues and leads before anyone else had the opportunity to find  
them. The reports gave Lieutenant Colonel Mustang something to turn in to the Furor  
so we could continue our personal quest, while appearing as if Ed were on assignment."  
"So, how did those 'people' know about the books?" Winry dared to ask.

"I don't know. I think there's something fishy at Central. And as much as I hate to  
say it, I don't think it's Mustang." Ed said, bobbing helplessly in his brother's  
strong grasp.

-

"Everything was completely destroyed" Ed said, complaining, but masking it as light  
conversation as Winry finished reattaching his leg.

"Are they mad at you?" The girl asked, not even looking from her work.

"They saw the reports. There was nothing we could do. Roy admitted that he was at  
fault because he did not post guards there while we worked." Al sat at the table,  
turning over the little machine Winry had put together in his hands, inspecting it   
absently.

"He's taking responsibility. It wasn't his fault, though, and he knows it. He didn't  
post guards so we could work in peace. Even if there were guards, they would have  
been killed." Ed rested his cheek on his left hand, flexing and rotating his right.

"Well, that'll do it!" She said, whipping her forehead, leaving a trail of grease on  
her alabaster-white skin. Edward chuckled. Winry turned her head confused, causing  
Al to laugh also. Her brows dropped in annoyance. "I'm going to go take a bath." she   
grumbled.

She gathered her toiletries and placed a hand on the door-knob. Before exiting to go  
to the bathroom down the hall, she stopped.

"You guys do a lot of dangerous things. I think it would be a good idea if I went  
with you to your next stop. You know, in case you need repairs or anything." She  
lowered her eyes. She desperately wanted to be close to them... close to him. She  
had been so frightened. She couldn't stand it if something went wrong. She couldn't   
continue living if she lost them... lost him.

"Yeah. Maybe you're right..." Ed smiled from the chair. He was reclining and looked  
very comfortable and casual.

Winry beamed a genuine smile. She pulled the door open and started out.

"Hey, Winry!" Ed stopped her with his voice. She paused and looked around the door  
at him with an inquiring look about her face. "Do you know what day it is today?"

Her eyes drifted upward, searching for the answer. "Um... no. I don't guess I do.   
Why?"

"Oh, no reason. Enjoy your bath." Ed grinned knowingly. Confused and mildly  
annoyed, she closed the door behind her. Her foot steps were heard receding down the  
hall.

"Okay Al. Let's go." Ed stood up and grabbed his red coat from the back of the chair  
he was in. The little room was bathed in a warm, bright light, exuding a completely  
different feeling from yesterday's encounter. The bare wood floors were bright and   
warm. The wooden furniture was dully sanded, but somehow inviting. Ed pulled his  
suitcase from under the green upholstered sofa.

"Go? And leave Winry? I thought we were taking her with us." Al held a finger to his  
mouth in uncertainty.

"We can't take her with us. If that dark woman grew so bold as to deal with us like  
that, then I wouldn't doubt that Winry might become a target if only to get to us."   
The short man seemed much taller and more grown-up with logic like that. "I can't  
risk her life just because we all want to be near each other." Ed's smile had  
vanished and his brother bent to his will. The young boy-in-armor walked quietly out  
the door and down the hall the opposite direction of the bathroom. Ed stayed behind  
for a moment before following.

-

"Now that you guys aren't working on that stupid project any more, how about you buy  
me lunch?" Winry smiled as she walked through the door. She looked around, fully  
dressed, but still towel-drying her hair. "Edward? Alphonse?" The room was quiet.   
She walked past the table toward the bedroom but stopped. She turned her attention to  
the surface, seeing a box there she hadn't noticed before. The wood was dark and  
polished with a reddened tint to it. Underneath was a piece of paper with writing on   
it. She picked it up and something small and metallic fell from it onto the box. She  
didn't pay it any attention for the time being. She read it aloud under her breath.

"Well, Happy Birthday, Winry.  
This is your gift. I thought you would have fun putting it together, but I placed it  
in the box. I didn't want to give away the surprise. You'll find the key right here.  
I'm sorry we can't take you with us and I'm sorry I led you to believe we would.   
Things are getting more dangerous right now and I can't take the chance of losing you.  
Please understand. Don't worry about us. We'll be fine.  
Mustang has paid for the room through tomorrow so you will have a place to stay.   
After that, please go back to Risembool. Stay safe, and have a happy birthday.

Sincerely,  
Edward Elric"

She didn't know whether to be happy or sad. Tears streamed down her face. Soon her  
lip began to tremble, and before long she was a crying heap on the floor. She wasn't   
sure whether she was crying for happiness or sadness. Perhaps it was both. She  
composed herself long enough to find the little key and insert it into the back of the  
box. She turned the key with a clicking sound, winding the spring within. Nothing  
happened. She ran her hands over the smooth, shiny surface of the simple wooden box  
before opening the top. 

A music box.

She smiled weakly as she watched the little figurine twirl to the music. Upon closer  
inspection she saw it was made up to look a little like herself, with blonde hair and  
a frilly black skirt under a white tank top. The figure was pirouetting, but it was  
clear to see a tiny wrench in her up-reached hand. She chuckled. It was a pathetic  
sound - the mixture of sobbing and laughing. When the music stopped she wound it up  
and played it again. She repeated this until the room had become dark and she looked  
longingly at the door, longingly after Edward - the Full Metal Alchemist; the boy of  
her heart.

-  
-- The End.


End file.
